The Ten Best Albums of 1966

Number 8

Aftermath – The Rolling Stones

Released on April 15, 1966

Side One:

1. Mother’s Little Helper

2. Stupid Girl

3. Lady Jane

4. Under My Thumb

5. Doncha Bother Me

6. Goin’ Home

Side Two:

1. Flight 505

2. High and Dry

3. Out of Time

4. It’s Not Easy

5. I Am Waiting

6. Take It or Leave It

7. Think

8. What to Do

This was the first Stones album where Mick and Keith wrote all the songs. It was steeped in that great blues sound that originally inspired them, but they really open things up for experimentation. Brian Jones plays the sitar, Appalachian dulcimer, and marimbas over the course of the album and the results were tremendous. Mother’s Little Helper and Under My Thumb are the standouts. Lady Jane, Out of Time, & I Am Waiting are also top picks.

 Comments and opinions are welcomed and encouraged.

Thank you for your interest.

The 40 Best Songs of 1966

Numbers 35 to 31

35. Black Is Black – Los Bravos

This one went up to number 4 on the charts and was the first song by a group from Spain to get that high. I’m particularly fond of Mike Kogel’s vocals.

34. Fire Engine – The 13^th Floor Elevators

Contrary to popular belief, San Francisco did not have a monopoly on the psychedelic sound. Roky Erickson and the 13^th Floor Elevators give Austin, Texas a legitimate claim to being the birthplace of psychedelia. Fire Engine was one of their best.

33. Homeward Bound – Simon and Garfunkel

This beautifully told story of homesickness is one of Paul Simon’s best songs. It just gives you a good feeling to hear it. It went to number five on the charts.

32. Rain – The Beatles

The B-side to Paperback Writer, the single went up to number 23 on the charts in June of 1966. It was one of the first Beatles songs to give a hint of the studio experimentation to come.

31. Under My Thumb – The Rolling Stones

It is one of the most misogynistic of Stones songs, but Brian Jones rocked that marimba.

Comments and opinions are welcomed and encouraged.

Thank you for your interest.

The Ten Best Albums of 1966

Number 9

Fifth Dimension – The Byrds

Released on July 18, 1966

Side One:

1. 5D (Fifth Dimension)

2. Wild Mountain Thyme

3. Mr. Spaceman

4. I See You

5. What’s Happening?!?!

6. I Come and Stand at Every Door

Side Two:

1. Eight Miles High

2. Hey Joe (Where You Gonna Go)

3. Captain Soul

4. John Riley

5. 2-4-2 Fox Trot (The Lear Jet Song)

The third Byrds album forced them into a new direction as primary songwriter Gene Clark left the band during recording. Mr. Spaceman and Eight Miles High are definite classics. Fifth Dimension, I See You, and What’s Happening are all top-notch tracks. David Crosby sang a version of Hey Joe. Wild Mountain Thyme and John Riley are nice folk standards. Captain Soul was a good instrumental. I Come and Stand was a serious anti-war song and The Lear Jet Song was a bit of a mess. All in all, this was a tremendous album.

Comments and opinions are welcome and encouraged.

Thank you for your interest.